Green Cloudy Water Need Some Help

You're doing fine! Don't worry about the amount of time it's taking; it's not abnormal at all. It often takes weeks to clear a really nasty pool, so a few days is nothing. :goodjob:

You won't need flocculant, but if you're impatient it may speed things up - BUT only after you're done shocking (overnight chlorine loss < 1 ppm; you'll be able to do it when you get your kit)
 
Well I really am trying to not use any extra chemicals now so I don't think using a flocculant is the route I would like to take. I mean what is the overall impact of doing that on the balance of the pool?

If it will clear and I am not just running my pump for eternity waiting for the water to clear then I can wait. Now my 6 year old.. well she was tired of waiting days ago ;)
 
Like MITS, I am not a fan of flocs. However, there are many reports on the forum of them being very useful just like JTS's post. The reports seem very mixed.

When I clear my swampy pool in the Spring, I notice the last day or so of the shocking/clearing process are pretty darn dramatic. The pool seems to go from cloudy, cloudy blue to crystal rather quickly. I believe it is possible for this condition to occur just about the same time we get impatient and decide to add a floc.

The result is the pool was about to enter this dramatic clearing stage from the use of chlorine but the addition of the floc gets credit for it. I have no evidence this is what occurs but it is fairly logical and consistent with what many others report here.

It could just as easily be that floc is pretty effective on some stuff and simply doesn't work on others.
 
Shablam said:
Well I really am trying to not use any extra chemicals now so I don't think using a flocculant is the route I would like to take. I mean what is the overall impact of doing that on the balance of the pool?


I'm not trying to talk you into anything, just reporting my experience.

Duraleigh may be 100% on track in that the pool may have been about to clear on its own, but I added the floc just prior to it clearing.

I didn't notice any changes to the balance of the pool as far as the chemical testing goes. I just added the floc, ran the pump for a while to mix it in then shut off the pool pump. The next morning the water was much more clear and I could vacuum the debris off the floor.
 
I put in one 96oz jug this morning, swept and tested. Still the same color as last night and can now see the drains, still a little cloudy.

The tracking on the test kit shows that its out for delivery. Should I test tonight before adding anything? Or add a jug wait a hour and test in preparation for the overnight shock test?

Any advice on how I should proceed when I get home with my new kit?
 
Unfortunately, I have to admit to doing the same thing. I tested my pond water twice and the tap water once....I didn't have a pool yet! :shock: :shock:

However, I suggest you don't add anything, test it only once :lol: and post the results or questions you have.
 
Ok here is what i have but do not seem right. I did the FC twice just to make sure. Could the others be messed up in the presence of high FC?

FC 41
PH 7.8
TA 371 - ?
TC 0 - ?
CYA 79

Pool is almost crystal clear, should I not add anything and see what I have in the morning?
 
FC 41 ----Yikes! That's over 8 unused gallons of chlorine in the pool....don't put any more in.
PH 7.8 ----- disregard this...it tests high in the presence of high FC.
TA 371 - ?-----How many drops of R-009 did it take to change colors----did you wipe the dropper tip of the R-0009?
TC 0 - ?------I think you mean CC but it doesn't matter for now
CYA 79------You should've had a reading in increments of 10 (60, 70, 80, etc) was it just barely above the 80 mark?

Did you perform the CH test?

None of this is overly dangerous so post back with comments and we'll get you headed down the right path.
 
The FC test I know is right, I did it twice and it came out the same each time.

The TA - I dropped 37 before it changed.
The CH test i could never get it to turn colors, did that one twice.
CYA - yes just right above 80 so I would say it was 80.

With the TA it seemed like it was taking for ever to change..
Also on the FC how clear is it supposed to get? It never lost a slight shade of pink, well almost like a light orange.

Doesn't the CYA chart say i need to be at 39 for shock level?
Should I do these tests over before bed?

Sheesh, thanks for the help on this dont know how I screwed up basic chemistry ;)
 

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Did another test this morning before the kids awoke so i could concentrate... little rascals ;)

ok:

FC 39.5
CC 1.5
CH 390
TA 180
CYA 80

Disregarded PH

Does the CH look right?

Well its supposed to be 100 today and 102 tomorrow so that should suck up some of the chlorine.
 
Hey,

Much better numbers....looks like you're getting the hang of it.

Taking it one step at a time.....

1. The 1.5CC indicates the need to continue shocking the pool at 30ppm or so. YOur pool should be down to 30 FC in about three days so test again for FC and CC. If your CC's are 1.0 or greater, you'll need to add some more chlorine to keep it at 30ppm FC until you get the CC's down. My bet is the'll be there in three days but you need to check.

2. When you did the TA test, did you wipe the dropper tip?

3. There's more to do but let's get the CC's gone first and then make some tuning adjustments. I forgot, tell us how your water looks?
 
Water is almost completely crystal. I am going to take a picture around 1 as this is when I have full sun. I will test the CC again around 3 when I plan on doing another FC test and try the TA again.

Yes I wiped it this time so I had better numbers. I read later about how a yellow color is still valid. I think this will reduce my numbers as I was waiting for red. The CC might be lower also, you know the whole swirling of the tube takes some practice but i think I got it down.

I have been contemplating all day about draining 36% as this is the recommendation that the pool calc has for my CH and CYA. Do you think that this will be beneficial right now in lowering some of these numbers and getting my wife and kids swimming a little sooner?

Thanks again. I love the test kit; my father came by today and took one look at it and said "that beats the tar out of the little tester I used when you were a kid". He's a good ole boy Texan ;)
 
Personally, I would swim in your pool right now. As a guideline, however, the forum suggests shock level FC being the max which for you is 30ppm.

I have been contemplating all day about draining 36% as this is the recommendation that the pool calc has for my CH and CYA. Do you think that this will be beneficial right now in lowering some of these numbers and getting my wife and kids swimming a little sooner?
Yes! If the water is not too expensive, with a 1/3 drain you can reduce your CYA to around 55 or so (perfect), your CH down to around 260 (perfect) and your FC will come down to around 20......that's shock level for a 50ppm CYA so within the guidelines of safe swimming. I encourage you to do that. It will make everything fall in line and all you'll have left is some fine tuning. :lol: :lol:
 
Use two hoses if you have them. That should get you close to 8gpm or roughly 8 hours.

If you have three hoses you could actually put the two siphons at one end on the bottom and start to refill from the top at the opposite end of your pool (pump off).

You'd get a little mixing so you may only get a 30% dilution but you would really speed up your turnover time.
 
Ok siphon started at 3:15 with two hoses.

duraleigh, do you think the rate of flow is 4 gpm for each hose? Just checking to make sure that I don't get too much out.

At 4 gpm x 2 = 8 gpm x 60 = 480 gph so that would put me at about 12:00 am for 35% or 8.5 hours. That sound about right?
 

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